Los Angeles daily herald., 1887-07-07
DAILY HERALD
PEDRO SAINSEVAIN.

PEDRO SAINSEvAIN.
interesting History of a WELL
Kuown Citizen.
The following. taken from San Fran
cisco paper, will prove very interesting,
since it is in relation to gentleman wen
known in aud associate with Southern
California. 1t will be remembered tna'
in 1866 the City Council of Los Angeles
gave the name of Sainsevain to one OIL
the streets, which still bears that name.
Last year the Southern Pacific Railroad
Company established station on It's
line 10 the East near Cotton named sain'
sevain station. In 1856 the City Coun-
Gil gave to one of the streets the name
! \ tignes, and the sketch Of the family
blow will be read with interest:
.adro Sainsevain, of the San Jose
yiation, was born near Bordeaux,
tdce, November 10, 1918. He is a
Ser of pioneers, and is one OF Cali
AS best and most useful citizens.
Ny considerations brought him to
kuntry. In November, 1888, his
Mrs. Vlgnes, and daughter, then
ktfisdYin France, believing that Mr..
u rf6ss, the husband and father, had
died at Los Angeles, California, where
he had been engaged in business. gave to
Mr.. Pedro Sainsev vain their power OF at
torpev to 90 to California and
settle up the estate. The same
month he left Bordeaux in a
vessel bound for Callao, Peru, where he
landed in March, 1889, awaiting there
the first chance to come to California.
In the beginning of May, 1889, he sailed
from Callao in the schooner Ayacucha
and landed at Santa Barbara the 4!h of
July of the same year. From there he
went to Los Angeles by land, where.
much to his qualification, he found his
uncle, Mr.. Jean Louis Vignes. in good
health. The distance of California from
France, and the difficulty of communi-
cation between the two countries in
those days, had been the cause of the
report being for long time left uncon-
tradicted.
Mr.. Vignes was the first who planted |
vineyards in California ON an extensive
scale and for commercial purposes.
Mr.. Sainsevain remained with his un- |
Gle, assisting him in his business enter.
prises, until lS4l. He then left Los
Angeles and constructed sawmill near
San Bernardino. This was the first saw.
mill in California. In lS43, the timber
scarce at that place, he OBJ
.alned from Governor Manuel Michel.
torena grant of two leagues of good
timber land on the San Lo.
-enzo river at Santa Cruz, and in the
same year he proceeded to that place in
with Don. Carlos Boussillon,
md they built large sawmill inst where
g now the Santa Cruz Powder Mill. In
1914 he obtained from the same Cover.
nor grant of LAM in San Joaquin
IN the Guadalupe river, for the purpose
If erecting -four mill. By the end of
he year the mill was in operation. This
was also the first -four mill in California.
IN lS45 his partner and himself built at
santa Cruz a schooner of $50 tons bur.
hen for the transportation along
he coast of their lumber and fonr.
This was the first vessel
,uilt in California The
'esult of all these business enterprises
vas very satisfactory to the proprietors,
md they continued TO be prohtably en-
ragged in them up to the period of the
discovery of gold in California, and for
ONE time after. In 1858 Mr.. Sainsevain
,lanted the first large vineyard-40, 900
'ines--in the county of Santa Clara.
md in 1866, in company with his
,rotber, MIR. Jean Louis Sainsevain, he
Fought from his uncle, Mr.. Jean Louis
the celebrated vineyard of the
Also, at Los Angeles. Since then he
las been nearly all the time engaged in
he California wine business.
In 1856 Mr.. Sainsevain went to France
or the purpose of studying the different
processes Of wine making in that
ountry. He returned in 1857 and es.
ablished q store OF California wines and
randy in San Francisco, at the corner
f Ickson and Montgomery streets, in
with his brother. He there
commenced the manufacture of the first
california sparkling wire-champagne.
n January, 1861, he was in New
York, with cargo OF the differ
mt kinds of California wines. hoping
o introduce successfully the wines into
nat market and build up a permanent
lemand for them. He established his
cellars at 81 Cedar street, and the prot-
,ects appeared to him splendid in busi-
less point of view, but the civil war
soon after, and for time all
transactions went down. He
emained there up to August of the same
rear and seeing no appearance OF better
prospects for the near future he came
pack to his family and business affairs
n California.
In 1877 he went to Guatemala, Cen
raj America, with his family. He took
cargo of his California wines and
brandy, to establish that business there.
The President of the Republic, Rufino
3arrios, decided him all the land he
wanted for the purpose of planting
Vineyards and farming. He planted 20
700 vines. but the attempt at cultivating
vines in Guatemala proved failure. The
grapes did not mature. The climate, he
ound is not adapted for vineyard.
There is not enough variation in the tenn.
the winter being nearly as warm
as the summer. His farming operations
we're equally unsuccessful. The wheat
md barley, for the same reason, turned
,ut as badly as the vines. Miserable |
Is we're the first years results, he did
not like to abandon the attempt, but after
d continued trial of four years in the
and in the 500 acres planted
each season in wheat, barley, rye and
corn, he was forced to the conviction
that there was no use to further waste
lime and labor in that field. He sold
his place, machinery, stock, etc., and
came back, as he says, with the great
est of pleasure to the beautiful climate
of San Jose and the delightful valley of
Santa Clara" where he proposes to end